Projects Need a painter for a 1932 Ruxton

Really, this started out as a tune-up.



Build story is here:

http://www.thelincolnforum.net/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=44158

Josh Highley did a road trip up here for 2 days and did all of the metal work. He declared it incredibly well preserved.

I made an attempt at prepping the body for paint and failed miserably. I really don't know what I'm doing, and now I know it for sure. The body's never been hit so I thought I could make it right.

I really need a reliable painter near-by as the owner really wants me to see the project through. It has to be done by August as it, along with every other Ruxton in existence, is invited to Pebble Beach. I believe there are 19 Ruxtons left in the world. I hope to drive it on the 88-mile Tour.

The owner wants a variation of a factory-offered paint job. That's about as custom as it gets.



I might have the prep work covered, but need an artist to finish the job ASAP.

 

Drugs? HRP

 

There is a Ruxton sedan,29 I think,sitting in a warehouse in Kilgore,Texas..I'll bet it wont be at Pebble Beach..

 

I'm surprised there isn't a local shop that's willing to take this on? talk about a resume builder! to be able to lay paint on such a rare auto...I suppose too many chances of screwing up an unusual paint job

 

This looks like a Peter Max design....

 

That's actually stock for Ruxton, guys- they were pretty flashy

Check with Highlander and Jim Dillon- I bet they would know who to contact in your area!

 

Loved the whole idea of a Ruxton. Sort of the early 30's re-interpretation of an American Underslung, the whole fenders-level-with-the-hood type of thing.

Cosmo

 

Stock or not, I just don't know what it would take to make me do that to any car.

 

Ah, come on tin, you lived thru the 60's & 70's


" The ice cream truck in his neighborhood plays Helter-Skelter "

 

Most rich people back in the day kept a fairly low profile..Ruxtons were for wealthy owners who WANTED to be noticed....
I like em, they're an interesting bit of automotive history.

 

I used to know a guy in Indiana (whose name was Ruxton) that was related to the founder of the company. Interesting guy.

 

I think this was on Chasing Classic Cars fairly recently.

 

I must have! I'm here now....and I'm old.........sure don't remember much.
Pretty sure I had a really good time!

Are you sure it's the ice cream truck???? All this time I thought it was just in my head.

 

The roof pillars on that multi colored Ruxton look like they are marked off for about a 6" chop. Come on, someone who is good with PhotoShop, chop that sucker for us.

 

How about a for-real 3" chop done in the '50s.

 

This car was assembled in 1932 while the company was in receivership. It's titled as a '32.

 

I believe that Ruxton was an attorney that was called into an unnamed partnership claiming that he could raise the capital they needed to build their front-driver, so they named the company after him. Apparently, he never came through with investors, but got a car company named after him.

For those that had never heard about the Ruxton you'd be pretty impressed with its driveline. It uses a purpose-built 18S Continental in-line 8 cylinder producing 100 horsepower. The engine is mounted backwards, with its #1 plug at the firewall and its output facing forward. The engine mates with a rigid crossmember/bellhousing that contains the clutch. The transmission/differential then mounts to the bell housing. Shifting is done by means of a 6-foot shift rod that slides through a mount on the engine to activate a conventional shifter at the front of the car. They needed a fan so the flywheel has a pulley on the back of it that drives a fan on a pedestal in front of the radiator.

 

Ruxton ended up sueing the company also for defamation for using his name!

 

It was actually Joseph Urban...The Peter Max of the 30's who designed the paint scheme, art deco trend that was gaining steam in the 30's

 

The multi color blue Ruxton was painted by my old friend Don Chapman. It was done in lacquer. Don was one of the best body man and painter in our area of Washington. He did all the body work on my award winning 1926 T coupe. He got me started in the car restoration hobby.

 

The project is now back on track. My buddy Jocko showed up, as promised. I learned more in 10 minutes than I had assumed about body work in my whole life.

Jocko had been following my progress and decided it was time for him to jump in and save the day. He's committed to working 2-3 days a week until finished. He estimates being ready to shoot the body and get it ready for paint in 3 weeks.

Here's what's astounding. I had to learn to feel the surface properly. I had always used my fingertips on the metal. He says a soft cloth between your palm and the surface is far more revealing. Within the first minute an area I pointed out to look "pretty good" turned out to be mediocre, at best. All he did initially is block the area with sandpaper in two direction which revealed many high and low spots. I tried to catch what was so plain to the eye.



He says the flat file doesn't lie. This would look terrible without fixing it.



Ater two hours of hammer work he was able to eliminate the need for Bondo and will just use a metal glaze, which is a super-fine ground filler that will smooth things out with very little build up.



While this looks terrible it's incredibly flat, and that's what counts right now. Jocko says the least mount of material betwen the metal and the paint the better. That makes sense. I asked how they were able to get the body smooth enough the first time and he confirmed that they used primer. I assumed it was sprayed on, but he tells me it was trowled on, left to dry and sanded smooth. That explains why I found nothing but paint and lead.

I tried to make the obvious dimples go away by filling them, but then proceeded to sand them flat on a curved surface. He removed the filler and, using a hammer and dolly, made the surface match the surrounding metal.



The chassis is pretty much done. Until I get the engine back I'm pretty much done, so I'm going to sand-blast the hood pieces after chemically removing the paint. I'll remove the rivets from the fender braces and have the front fenders dipped and e-coated, or somehow protected until the body is done.

Today was a good day.

 

I just saw that multi colored one,on an episode of Chasing Classic cars, the other night
..wonder if its the same one..!!

 

No, this was the color scheme.

 

Don't sand blast them, MEDIA blast them. Sand blasting will destroy and warp the metal.
r

 

I chemically remove the paint, blasting just cleans the residue.

 

Sent the tires off to the shop to be spun to find the best two for use on the front end. The rears will be more forgiving of a wobble.



I got my first lesson in body filling. He determined that the area on both sides of the lead seams required some filler.



He didn't wait long to start shaping the surface. Using a coarse body file he removed the lines left from spreading the filler and then went at the surface with 80 grit in two directions. This area is now about as flat as can be.



The original panel installation wasn't exactly perfect so there's a bit of lead in the front corners.



Another batch of filler. Yellow paste with a blue catalyst and the perfect batch is lime green.



This squared things up nicely. The blue tape reminds him that the area needs a little more work.



He wants to finish the roof and then put the body on a 3 foot tall platform to do the rest of it. Once he's far enough along he'll prime the whole body, shoot some color along the body and reinstall it permanently before final blocking is done. He wants everything bolted down and locked in place before paint.

We discussed having the rest of the sheet metal chemically stripped and e-coated. Much of that would get sanded off on the outer surfaces, but will protect all the areas you can't get to with primer. Apparently my time stripping and facilitating the repairs to the body in advance of Jocko's involvement has move this along considerably.

He'll be back next Tuesday. In the interim I will bleed and adjust the brakes, which buttons up that system.

 

Sand is a media

 

We made it to Pebble Beach, with no time to spare.

 

This car was painted by old friend Don Chapman. A beautiful restoration.


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